The wife of Eagles co-founder Randy Meisner has been shot dead at the couple's Los Angeles home amid reports of domestic abuse.

Lana Rae Meisner, 63, was shot in the head and died on Sunday night at the Studio City home she shared with bassist husband Randy, 69, police said. The pair had been married for 20 years.

Around an hour and a half before Randy called police to report his wife had been killed, Lana called 911 herself to report domestic abuse, according to TMZ.

Law enforcement sources told the gossip site that Lana reported Randy for waving a BB gun around and 'acting erratically' at approximately 5.30pm on Sunday.

According to Radar Online, police attended the couple's home but left shortly afterwards.

Then, at 6.59pm, Randy called officers to report that his wife had accidentally shot herself while looking for something in a closet.

Randy told police that Lana had gone into another room before he heard a gunshot after which he went in and found her dead, it is reported.

He told officers that Lana was 'stumbling around' looking for something in a closet where the couple kept two

According to Randy, Lana attempted to catch the weapon and in the process shot herself.

Radar reports that CCTV cameras captured Lana's grisly last moments and will be reviewing the footage as part of an investigation into her death.

TMZ adds that at 4:45am on Monday, Randy was taken to hospital after acting 'in an altered state'.

Police sources who spoke to the site added: 'Randy seemed to be in shock and wasn’t even able to acknowledge that Lana Rae was dead from a gunshot wound.'

LAPD detective Gus Barrientos told the New York Post that the shooting appears to have been accidental.

He said: 'There was an accidental discharge of the firearm. It was completely accidental, there is nothing indicative of a murder, homicide or a suicide.

'It’s a weird accident, that’s all I can say. There was absolutely no struggle, just a freak accident.'

Randy, who left the Eagles in 1977, had reportedly been suffering from bipolar disorder and had threatened to shoot people in the past.

In July 2015 friend James Newton was granted temporary conservatorship over Randy after he allegedly threatened 'to gun everyone down with an AK-47'.

Martin also revealed that Randy had been hospitalized several times for alcoholism, and had threatened to kill himself by overdosing on medication he was taking for a 'mood disorder'.

Making the case for Newton to be granted conservatorship, Martin said that Lana was in denial about the singer's various conditions and had done little to help him battle them.

Newton alleged that Lana was keeping Randy drunk 'around the clock' with vodka because he was easier to control while inebriated.

Lana was also accused of leaving Randy unwashed for up to a month at a time while frittering away his millions on cosmetic surgery, vacations and home renovations.

During proceedings, Martin was also quizzed over a bizarre incident in which Lana had left a voicemail message claiming that neighbors dressed 'in clown suits' had been spying on her and were going to report her to police for using cocaine.

After the judge ruled in Newton's favor, Lana stormed out of the courtroom, it was reported.

Newton was also forced to ask for an escort out of the courtroom, saying that Randy had 'verbally attacked' him in the hallway earlier.

Randy appeared in court to contest the order, but spoke only to confirm his name and age. The couple had denied the allegations.

Randy helped found the Eagles along with Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Bernie Leadon in 1971 before the band released their first album the following year.

Bass player and backing vocalist for the group, Randy is best known for writing and singing on 1975 hit Take It To The Limit.

Randy suddenly left the group in 1977 claiming 'exhaustion', though it later emerged he had got into a backstage fight with Frey.

The rest of the group eventually split after fighting drove them apart only to reunite 14 years later, though Randy claims he was denied the opportunity to perform with them again.

Randy suffered well-publicized battles with drink and drug abuse during and after his tenure with the Eagles, which he credited with destroying his first marriage to Jennifer Barton.

The pair married in 1963 before divorcing in 1981. Lana is Randy's second wife, who he married in November of 1996.

That abuse eventually led to a minor heart attack in 2004 which caused him to cut back on touring, before he was left in a coma in 2013 after choking on food at home.

He survived but was force to spend months recovering in hospital, telling the New York Daily News that his former bandmates paid for his care, despite their past issues.